How Green Public Procurement Became a Crucial Pillar for Bhutan’s Sustainable Development Strategy

The GPP Bhutan (GPPB) project, led by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), worked over 3.5 years to scale up public demand for environmentally and socially preferred goods and services. The project focused on research, policy support, and capacity building, resulting in the training of nearly 100 civil servants and 57 representatives from higher educational institutions. Key achievements include the official endorsement of GPP recommendations by the Ministry of Finance in 2015, the establishment of a parliamentary working group, and the institutionalization of a GPP curriculum at the Royal Institute of Management (RIM). The project also provided technical assistance for pilot projects with the City of Thimphu and the Ministry of Works and Human Settlements, emphasizing life-cycle costing and green infrastructure criteria.

• Public procurement in Bhutan has a significant economic impact, accounting for approximately 21 per cent of the national GDP and between 60% and 70% of the government's annual budget.
• The existing legal framework in Bhutan is already supportive of green public procurement; the primary barrier to implementation is a need for a change in mindset rather than a change in laws.
• The GPPB project successfully institutionalized GPP knowledge through the creation of a knowledge platform and the integration of GPP into the regular coursework for future civil servants at the Royal Institute of Management (RIM).
• Practical implementation of GPP was demonstrated through pilot projects, such as the City of Thimphu's use of a life-cycle approach to purchase LED lightbulbs for roads to achieve energy and cost savings.
• The project established a foundation for long-term sustainability by engaging 188 local suppliers in awareness sessions and securing the endorsement of 10 GPP recommendations by the Ministry of Finance in 2015.

APA

Casier, L. (2017). How Green Public Procurement Became a Crucial Pillar for Bhutan’s Sustainable Development Strategy. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/gpp-bhutan-sustainable-development-strategy.pdf

Chicago

Casier, Liesbeth. How Green Public Procurement Became a Crucial Pillar for Bhutan’s Sustainable Development Strategy. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2017. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/gpp-bhutan-sustainable-development-strategy.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Casier |first1=Liesbeth |title=How Green Public Procurement Became a Crucial Pillar for Bhutan’s Sustainable Development Strategy |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=September 2017 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/gpp-bhutan-sustainable-development-strategy.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{casier2017how, author = {Casier, Liesbeth}, title = {{How Green Public Procurement Became a Crucial Pillar for Bhutan’s Sustainable Development Strategy}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2017}, month = sep, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/gpp-bhutan-sustainable-development-strategy.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }